Partition USB Flash Drives

USB flash drives cannot be partitioned in the Windows operating if the drive is identified as removable media. The only way to partition the USB flash drive is to flip the removable bit so that it is recognized as fixed media instead which can be partitioned like any normal hard drive.

A tool that can flip the bit and should work with most usb flash drives is Lexar's USB format tool. It is a portable tool that has been designed for Lexar USB drives but it works with other brands as well.

The program has been designed so that you can partition USB Flash Drives after you have processed it using the program, but provides other features as well.

The main interface does not only provide an option to change the removable bit, but also to format the usb drive, set a volume label and add a bootable partition to the drive.

Partition USB Flash Drives

You only need to press the flip removable bit button if you want to prepare the flash drive for use with multiple partitions. The drive has to be removed and connected again to the computer system afterwards.

It should be noted that Lexar USB Format will not partition the usb flash drive which has to be done with other tools. For that you can use the build in tools in the operating system. Read Joshua's System Partitioning With Vista article to find out how to do that in Windows Vista. A more universal software is the gParted Live CD which can be booted from any computer system.

Another option to create multiple USB stick partitions has been discussed before at Ghacks. The process involves editing the Windows Registry and has the disadvantage that the add-on partitions are only visible on that computer system.

Verdict

Lexar USB Format is a handy portable program for Windows that allows you to make any drive fixed so that it can be partitioned. This can be useful if you want to have access to multiple partitions on an USB Flash Drive, for instance to encrypt one and keep the other readable, or to separate data on the drive.

Update: Lexar USB Format is no longer available at its original destination. We have uploaded the latest working version of the product to our own servers. You can download it with a click on the following link: Lexar USB Format

Summary

Author Rating

3 based on 2 votes

Software Name

Lexar USB Format

Operating System

Windows

Software Category

Administration

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About Martin Brinkmann

Martin Brinkmann is a journalist from Germany who founded Ghacks Technology News Back in 2005. He is passionate about all things tech and knows the Internet and computers like the back of his hand.You can follow Martin on Facebook, Twitter or Google+

Hoi Martin, First off all thanks your your fast answer. And i am sorry to report to you this but i trayed everything with the mirror, your supplied, but this links spring in a loop. Hopefully you have a outher link.

Thanks a mill. Martin. This one works fine. So thank you ferry much here from The Netherlands, i am one verry happy Dutchmen. Speaking of dutchmen Martin i have a question for you because of your surname Brinkmann this is a real Dutch sirname, so are you a Dutchman?

Microsoft should provide a hotfix to this issue. A simple task like this doesn’t need to be that difficult, look at Linux, it natively supports multiple USB flash drive partitions. What’s the “philosophy” behind Microsoft’s reluctance to recognize any additional partitions on a USB flash drive?

Hi all I have been looking long+hard for a solution to this. It appears as if it isnt possible (due to the way the hardware is made + operating system restrictions) but there is a way thats almost like partitioning the usb drive its software called Rohos Mini Drive.(free+tiny 2.65 Mb application) It will create a “partition” on any removable media that can also be locked with a password. the only drawback is that u have to run the rohos.exe from ur flashdisk before u will c the partition.but once thats done (+ur password is entered) it shows up just like another drive on any pc. SO ITS NOT PERFECT…BUT IT IS RATHER CLOSE TO WHAT WE WANT..I CAN LIVE WITH IT…CONSIDERING THERES NO REAL OTHER WAY TO DO IT…

hello there. im jhef, 4th year college student. my group mates and i are proposing this concept. we propose to partition a flash drive, the user could select what partition to be used. if he activated only one partition the rest partition will be turned off. if he wish to partition all, all should be turn on.if he did not turn it off and plug out his FD, and plug in to another pc the partition still be turn on. our main target is windows (7, XP). is this possible?

Nice stuff, but it Doesn’t work with my Sandisk Cruzer 8GB … it tells me to reinsert media afterwards but it is still recognized as a USB stick and bootit V1.07 tells I have -525MB on my stick …XD is the version 1.07 the latest version? otherwise I guess I’m screwed

About gHacks

Ghacks is a technology news blog that was founded in 2005 by Martin Brinkmann. It has since then become one of the most popular tech news sites on the Internet with five authors and regular contributions from freelance writers.